“We just try to eat everything with the least carbs as possible” — Fat Joe opens up about losing 200-Lb and using Ozempic for diabetes

Joseph Antonio Cartagena, a.k.a. Fat Joe, recently opened up about his weight loss journey. In an interview with US Weekly on Thursday, October 10, 2024, the rapper credited diet changes and Ozempic for helping him maintain his new figure. He revealed:

"We just try to eat everything with the least carbs as possible... So we try to stay away from the bread, the pasta, the rice. That’s the smartest way to eat.

The All the Way Up hitmaker also noted that Ozempic, which he takes for his type 2 diabetes, helps him keep off the 200 pounds he lost (the drug is known for its appetite-controlling side effect.). He quipped:

"Ozempic says you may only have two pieces of your favorite stuff."

Fat Joe hails from the Bronx and began his hip-hop career with the group Diggin' in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.) in 1992. A year later, he released his solo album Represent, which yielded the single Flow Joe. The song peaked atop Billboard's Hot Rap Songs chart. The rapper's other hit songs include We Thuggin, What's Luv, Make It Rain, and Another Round.

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"My wife would kill me"- Fat Joe quips he won't change his rapper name because of his wife

In his US Weekly interview, Fat Joe stated that he still needs to eat carbs, which means portion control was the key. He explained:

"Like this morning I ate breakfast, I had this toast. I cut the corner off, ate it and kept it moving. Normally I would’ve ate the whole thing. But you know, that’s what we do. We cut carbs and try to be smarter."

Despite his weight loss, Joesph revealed he won't be changing his rapper name anytime soon because of his wife, Lorena Cartagena. He jokingly explained:

"My wife would kill me. She likes me being a big boy... She hallucinates like I’m still that big boy. She loves that."

The pair married in 1995 and share a daughter, Azariah, 18. Joe is also a father to two sons from previous relationships, Joey, 33, and Ryan, 27.

Fat Joe has been on the weight loss journey for a few years. He previously opened up about what motivated him to lead a healthier lifestyle in an interview with Men's Health in 2023. He explained that losing his friend and collaborator Big Pun to a heart attack in 2000 (the rapper was just 28). He continued:

"I went to his funeral and I felt like Ebenezer Scrooge. And I’m looking at his little daughter. She was the same age as my daughter. I said, ‘You gotta lose weight; otherwise you outta here.'"

Elsewhere in the interview with US Weekly, Fat Joe spoke about his music career. He discussed his recent single, Paradise, a collaboration with DJ Khaled and Anitta where they sampled Stevie B's Spring Love. He revealed the song was doing great on radio and Spotify, adding it's one of those songs people love their whole life.

The rapper noted that in the future he would love to work with Mary Jane Blige. He even praised upcoming country musician Jelly Roll.

Recently, the rapper hosted the BET Hip Hop Awards 2024, which aired on Tuesday, October 15, 2024.